







彼众我寡 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be heavily outnumbered”. The enemy is numerous while one's own forces are few. Literally, “They numerous, we few”.
The State of Chu, allied with Cao and Wei, launched an attack on the State of Song. Song, in distress, appealed to Duke Wen of Jin for assistance.
Xian Zhen, a strategist, recognized this as a prime opportunity for Jin to establish its hegemony. Duke Wen of Jin consulted his uncle, Hu Yan, on how to approach a battle where his forces would be heavily outnumbered. Hu Yan advised him to employ cunning and deception to achieve victory.
However, another official, Yong Ji, disagreed with this strategy. Despite the differing opinions, Duke Wen of Jin appointed Hu Yan as the commander of the upper army and ordered an attack on Cao and Wei.
The King of Chu, caught off guard and falling for the ruse, suffered a devastating defeat.

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Open the tool →彼众我寡 (bǐ zhòng wǒ guǎ) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be heavily outnumbered”.
彼众我寡 is pronounced bǐ zhòng wǒ guǎ in Mandarin Chinese.
Literally, 彼众我寡 means “They numerous, we few”. It is used to mean “to be heavily outnumbered”.
彼众我寡 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
彼:对方。指对方军队势众,而我方力量单薄。